Three affordable housing projects receive state funding boost

Three Sioux Falls affordable housing projects received a boost when state funding was awarded this week.

The Westwood Apartments, seven buildings planned in southwestern Sioux Falls, received the maximum award of $535,000 worth of tax credits. That will add to the money the project received through a new city loan program earlier this year.

“I think it makes a difference when the city gets behind a project the way we got behind the Westwood,” City of Sioux Falls Affordable Housing Manager Les Kinstad said.

The Westwood Apartments, being developed by Ken Dunlap’s Grandview LLC, will bring another 56 affordable units to the area near the Family Wellness fitness center at 32nd Street and Tea-Ellis Road.

Westwood was one of six projects to receive tax credits out of 13 applicants statewide.

Another was a project of LifeScapes, formerly South Dakota Achieve, an organization that supports adults with developmental disabilities. That group received $174,392 in tax credits for two housing projects.

One is a group home that will be part of the Beacon program for adults with severe autism. The four-plex will be built in southeastern Sioux Falls

“It’s bringing them closer to their independence, being integrated into the community,” LifeScapes Vice President of Residential Services Jean Crowe said.

LifeScapes is planning another affordable housing project, open to anyone who meets income guidelines. Two buildings, a four-unit and six-unit apartment, will be built off of 10th Street west of Kmart.

Both LifeScapes and Westwood developers hope to start construction this fall. They could be ready for residents by next spring.

The Sioux Falls projects also got funding through the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s HOME program, which provides a no-interest loan.

The tax credits are an IRS program, where developers sell credits to an investor, which gives them equity for the project. In Westwood’s case, developers have $535,000 worth of tax credits to sell each year for the next 10 years, a value of about $4.8 million.

The Westwood project will cost about $8 million total. The apartments will rent for $369 to $825 per month. To qualify, a family must have an income at 30 to 60 percent of the area average. That’s about $43,300 for a family of four.

Grandview requested $350,000 in city dollars, which it will pay back over 32 years at $11,000 per year with no interest.